Cruise's potential casting had been reported for months, but this is the first confirmation of which role he'll take on in the campy musical about a rock club on the Sunset strip in the 1980s.
Tony Award nominee Will Swenson (Hair, Priscilla Queen of the Desert) originated the role of Stacee Jaxx in the 2008 Off-Broadway production of Rock of Ages. James Carpinello (Saturday Night Fever) took over when the musical transferred to Broadway in 2009.
Actors Alec Baldwin and Russell Brand are also being courted for the film. Filming will begin in May.
Adam Shankman, who directed and choreographed the film adaptation of Hairspray, will direct Rock of Ages' big screen premiere.
As previously reported, the musical's book writer Chris D'Arienzo has penned the screenplay for the film that will be produced by the Rock of Ages Broadway producers Carl Levin, Matthew Weaver and Scott Prisand, with Tobey Maguire and Jennifer Gibgot. Executive producers are Janet Billig and Hillary Weaver, who are also producers of the Broadway production.
Rock of Ages, which uses hits from the 1980s as its score, originally premiered Off-Broadway at New World Stages in October 2008. The musical transferred to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on Broadway in March 2009, earning five Tony nominations including Best Musical, Best Direction, and Best Actor for Constantine Maroulis.
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